Nightmare in Reverse
by Verassi
Summary: He was alone in this forest with the creature. Man versus monster, only one could survive.


AN: 'm back at it with the horror one-shots! I got enabled on discord and this is what came of it, so I hope you enjoy :D

* * *

It was just before sunset, the low light spread through the trees in an eerie glow. There was something ominous that offset the serenity of the scene, though he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Izuku supposed that the reputation this forest had garnered added to the atmosphere. It would be easy for anyone to feel unsettled by this forest, especially at dusk, with the recent reports of missing persons. There had been a spike in missing persons here lately, and an unsettling revelation when their bodies had been found later, mutilated almost beyond recognition.

The trees hung too low, casting shadows and looming forebodingly over him as he walked the trail, keeping his eye out for any trespassers. The brush was thick, making it difficult to see very deep into the forest that lay beyond. Roots stuck up from the ground, creating a maze for him to navigate, lest he be tripped up as he walked the path. Somewhere to his right, a bird took off, rustling the leaves. Izuku had always loved the sounds of the forest. It had always been riddled with life, but now, besides the few echoes of birds in the distance and a few stray leaves being shaken from trees, the forest was devoid of life. It left him feeling… unsettled, though he couldn't explain why.

Izuku sighed. This was going to be a long night. Part of him regretted taking the job, surely, he needn't be here… but then, the odd reports had intrigued him. People vanishing, never to be seen again… it had been quite the anomaly, and he had been intrigued by it. If there was a villain lurking in these woods, he wanted to catch them.

He continued en route of the trail, letting the dim light of the setting sun illuminate his path. Fog rolled in, obscuring the forest floor from his vision.

Something shifted through the fog, creating a line where the mist parted. Izuku turned his head to see what it was, but he found nothing.

There was no more movement.

No sound.

Nothing.

It was deafeningly quiet.

A chill spidered its way down his back, causing him to stand up straighter. There was something… off in the air; an unsettling dip in the temperature that set his nerves on edge.

Then, it passed, just as suddenly as it had come. A warm breeze wafted in, bringing with it the thick, musky scent of the forest. The fog dispersed until it was but a thin line of mist on the forest floor, coating the ground in dew.

Shaking his head, Izuku tried to shake the feeling of unease from his being. Just as a precaution, though, he fired up his full cowl and continued to patrol the forest.

The sun dipped lower in the sky; night began to fall over the forest.

His patrol was until dawn, meaning he still had several hours until he could go back to the entrance of the forest park and give his report. He doubted he'd find anything here. More than likely, it was going to end up being him alone in these woods till morning.

That knowledge didn't sit well with him. He should have asked if Ochako, Shouto or Tenya wanted to join him. As it stood, they didn't even know he had taken this job. Of course, that made sense. It was off the maps mostly, and he wanted to downplay his involvement, lest he get a bunch of fans trespassing on the forest grounds for a chance to meet him. It had happened before, and he wasn't too excited for it to happen again.

He continued to walk through the forest, mindful to stay on the path. It would be too easy to get lost in this forest if he stepped off the beaten path.

It was dark out now, though not dark enough that he couldn't make out the path in the dark forest before him.

He caught movement to his right and stopped. It was silent around him. For a moment, he tensed before a deer hopped out in front of the path. Even in the darkness, he could see the alertness of the deer as it stood stock-still in the middle of the path. It's fur bristled, a muted tone in the dull moonlight.

Izuku held his breath as the deer's ears twitched, scanning the surrounding area, its head moving mechanically around until their eyes met.

Izuku froze when he saw the deer's eyes—they were big, desolate and laden with pain. In his awe, full cowl fell… the green sparks of electricity diminishing until there was nothing left.

The green that had reflected in the deer's eyes subsided, leaving Izuku to stare into those deep pools filled with life.

Filled with caution.

 _With fear._

A sharp snap from a branch off in the distance snapped both of their attentions away from each other. The deer ran off at a staggering pace, not wasting a moment.

The message was clear.

 _There was danger nearby._

Fear spiked through him, elevating his heart rate before he gained control of himself. He was a pro hero who fought dangerous villains on the daily. Something that presented danger to a deer shouldn't scare him… but those eyes. That deer had looked petrified, deranged even, as if it were running for something far more important than its life.

A harsh wind dove through the forest, shaking the trees and howling like a madman. On it, came a putrid scent. He gagged when the smell singed into his nose; he couldn't comprehend the mixture of scents that invaded the area. It burned.

Another sharp crack could be heard, this time closer, and a flock of birds flew away.

Something was _off._

The air wasn't… right, it held a mystical, almost ominous vibe to it. It was as though the forest had been lulled into a kind of trance. The trees had all but froze, the wind having ceased to pull at the branches, and the wildlife had vanished, not a trace of life left in the area. In all the silence that surrounded him now, it was clear there was something awfully wrong with the forest.

The trees no longer stood by peacefully. Instead they loomed over him, their branches—claws—sat poised, ready to strike him down should he falter. The moon had been hidden by clouds, encasing the forest in a shade darker than black.

Izuku started to understand why no one else had wanted this job. This wasn't right—wasn't natural.

A howl rose through the night, but it hadn't been made by any creature that he knew of. Shivers ran down his spine at the harrowing sound, a systematic breakdown of his nerves jolting him from his trance.

Without thinking about it, he had started to walk forward, his signature red shoes guiding him towards the sound.

 _This has to be it, the reason why so many people had gone missing._

He had to go investigate, even if the hairs on the back of his neck protested this idea. He had to know; it was his job to figure it out.

His eyes had grown accustomed to the darkness now, varying shades of black alerting him to changes in the terrain.

As he neared the sound, something changed in the air. The pressure dropped, and he was suddenly frozen by the frigid wind. A murmur could be heard going through the trees, a whisper clandestinely hidden amongst the ancient forest.

A small rustling in the brush alerted him to a presence. Sweat beaded up on his neck, and his flesh rose with anticipation. A slight, almost unnoticeable tremor wove its way through his skin. The presence bore into his back, a sinister itch crawling up his spine as he took a deep breath.

Sharply, he turned heel to face the perpetrator.

From within the darkness, two glowing orbs of doleful white stared back at him.

He couldn't make anything else out, it was too dark, but there was something almost sinister in those eyes. Something completely empty, devoid of everything; those eyes lacked life.

There was a beat. The eyes stared at him, bore into him, but whatever it was, it didn't move, just… stared at him.

Almost unconsciously, Izuku activated full cowl. Even if this was just a nocturnal forest creature (something that, at this point, he highly doubted), it wouldn't hurt to be cautious.

Green electricity sparked to life, crackling in the air, fighting the darkness with it's glow. Within the dull light, Izuku could make out an outline of the creature.

His blood froze at what he saw.

It wasn't… natural. It almost looked human, walking on two legs, but… if it had ever been human in the past, it wasn't now. Limbs didn't bend that way… its torso had been so mangled and malnourished… ribs stretching taut against flesh, and scars lining the stomach. Its eyes though… eyes _shouldn't_ look like that—look so human, yet so animalistic. They had been so dull, yet so alive… _eyes were never meant to hold that kind of gaze, that kind of insatiable bloodlust._

His instincts kicked in; he ran.

When he stopped, deactivating his quirk, everything was still. The darkness that surrounded him was suffocating, but within it, there was nothing. No other life dwelled anywhere near this area.

It hadn't followed him, he realized when he had gotten a good distance away from it. He couldn't feel its presence any longer, but he knew, from the way it had gazed at him that it wouldn't be long until it searched for him again.

In that moment, though, he knew that _that thing_ , whatever it was, had been the reason for all the missing people. Missing tourists, missing rangers, _missing heroes._

He may be strong, but he couldn't afford to underestimate its power, either. He couldn't take that chance, so he quickly took out his phone.

His battery was full… but he didn't have a signal.

That was… odd. He should have some signal… if he stayed on the trail… Izuku looked at his surroundings, immediately realizing three things.

One, was that he had strayed off the trail and deeper into the forest.

Second, was that he was utterly alone now, with no chance at backup arriving.

The final thing he had realized, was that he was being hunted by that thing.

The look in its eyes had been enough of a declaration for him. It wasn't sensible or discriminatory in any regards; it had looked at him, and what he had seen in those blaring eyes was nothing but hunger.

Izuku tried to get a semblance of where he was, but the trees themselves seemed to be conspiring against him. They blocked out the night sky and crowded around him, leering at him.

The wind rushed by, a cold, harsh breeze that ran against him, carrying on it that same, mangled scent from before.

He felt trapped, like prey, and he was, in a sense. That thing had the upper hand here. It knew the area, the terrain, and he didn't. He didn't know what he was up against, but neither did that thing. It didn't know him either. He was a top pro. This thing couldn't possibly be worse than villains with monstrous quirks, villains who who could think clearly and consciously of their atrocities.

A branch broke, alerting him to its location. He turned, just to see a flash as its claw ran past—through—him. There hadn't been enough time to dodge it completely.

He stopped.

He went numb.

It had been cold, when he felt its sharp claws penetrate his side. It had been swift, not even catching on the bone, just running straight through him. It had been deadly, he realized much too late.

He unceremoniously fell to his knees, one hand clenching his side while the other held him up.

He took in a few shaky breaths, not able to discern his surroundings anymore. He looked up to see the creature hunched over. With weary, deluded eyes, he cast his sights on his wound.

It was nasty—probably already infected and big. It was _gaping._ His entire right side had just… caved in on itself. No... that wasn't right. His eyes grew dim, and dizziness set in.

The creature paid him no mind as he struggled to get his footing, blood dripping from the deep scratch marks on his side. It had ripped a few sizeable chunks out of him, tattering his suit and exposing his skin, or what was left of it.

He took a harsh breath in, and the creature stopped. It rose it's head, pale light from the moon illuminating its clammy skull. Two horridly sunken eyes, pure white in color, turned their gaze on him. It sniffed the air, a few greasy tendrils of hair flying freely in the wind as it casted a wicked smile in his direction.

Fear seized him.

It took its time ambling towards him; its gait broken, crooked.

Izuku stood there in awe and petrified fear. There was something… sinister about the creature, some intangible force that kept him from retreating, kept him frozen in place by fear. A warmth seeped through his side, the blood spilling generous amounts on the forest floor, coating it in red.

The creature was within a few feet of him when he regained control of himself, shaken out of his trance.

As quickly as he could, he fired up One For All and pushed himself away from the beast. It looked at him, its eyes blank, but Izuku could sense it: the cold fury emanating from its very being.

It had tasted blood, and it wouldn't stop until it had him.

* * *

He could hear heavy breathing. It was ragged, causing him to shudder as unease crept through him. He remained where he was, not daring to make a move. It was only after a moment that he realized the breathing had been his own.

He had run a fair distance from the creature, and he wasn't sure where he was, but he hoped he had given himself enough time to assess the situation at hand. Luckily for him, he had passed by a few fallen trees that almost made a sort of canopy. It would do well enough to hide him for a little bit, but it was awfully cramped and uncomfortable, especially on his injured side.

Pain ran its course through him, causing him to momentarily heave. He needed to take a look at his injury, and see if there was anything he could do for it. Taking a deep breath, he shifted his position and removed his hand from the wound to see the damage.

It was deep, three long claw-like marks that ran into his ribs. He could see the bone. He had had worse… the only problem was that he had no way of treating it now. It was most likely already infected, and he couldn't afford to lose anymore blood. He didn't have time to sit and rest either. That _thing_ was no doubt following his blood trail right now.

He wondered what it was, that creature. It wasn't anything familiar. Its features weren't something he'd ever seen before, not in nature, and not on a human.

That… thing… it was humanoid, but wasn't _human._

It may be anthropomorphic in appearance, but that was where the similarities stopped—humans didn't have that… that look in their eyes. That lifeless, deranged insanity. No quirk could do that; experiments couldn't even do that. That thing was beyond human intervention. No human could have made something that cruel, that sick… or twisted. But… they could, couldn't they?

It had been humans who made the Nomus' hadn't it? Nomu's had even _been human_ at one point, so maybe… it was possible that this thing was too.

He shook his head. Even if that was a possibility, something told Izuku that this thing, whatever it was, had been here for a lot longer than humans had. There was an ancient air around the cryptid, something that spoke of centuries worth of life… and death.

He was alone here now, and, for the first time tonight, the solitude of this forest had hit him. This place was dense, thick with brush, and swarming with trees. It made sense why people were meant to stay on the path. If he ended up lost, they may never find him.

He was lost now; he was alone, and that thing was the only other creature that would keep him company.

He didn't understand it. It had been so _fast_. It wasn't possible, even Tenya wasn't that fast, and he had literal engines in his legs.

Something buzzed around him. A cacophony of clicks and low screeches echoed through the trees. It rang through his head, and a low, deep moan could be heard rumbling through the forest floor.

He didn't need to listen long to know the sounds emitted had been by the creature. It was close now. It was mocking him.

All too suddenly, the sound stopped, as if it had been forcibly yanked away.

It was coming for him. He wasn't going down without a fight though.

That creature had taken out many people before him, probably more than he knew of, but that ended now. That ended with him. Even if he couldn't fight at full strength, what with his injury already setting in, he would stop it.

Somehow, he would end it.

Because this nightmare of a creature had lived its last life. He wasn't going to let it hurt any more people. He would stop it, even if it killed him.

With that thought in mind, Izuku ripped one of the sleeves from his shirt, and created a makeshift tourniquet. It wasn't perfect, but it would have to do for now. With great effort, he managed to pick himself up from off the ground, and leave the safety of his canopy.

The creature was nearby, he could feel it. The stench in the air alerted him to its presence, and the utterly deafening silence told him that all other life had scurried off. This creature thought little of him. It had been hunting people for years now. A measly human couldn't match its strength, but Izuku refused to give in.

It didn't matter whether or not he could win this fight, he didn't have a choice. That creature had decided to hunt him, so he had no choice but to stop it.

He was alone here. No one would even think to look for him until morning when he didn't report back. It was him versus this monster, and he knew… he knew it was a hopeless endeavor, with his injury and its experience, the winner was clear, but he had never been one to let the odds stop him. Now was no different. He would prove that he could survive.

The creature came into view. Two hollow eyes, small beacons of white in the eternal darkness, glared at him. A cold fury was laden in those eyes. It cast a toothful smile at him, canines sharp and ready to strike.

He activated full cowl, letting the green electricity dance in the air before he readied himself to fight. His green eyes were alight with determination as he took a single step forward, bracing himself for the attack.

The creature hunched down onto all fours and ran straight for him. This time though, Izuku was ready. He wouldn't be caught off guard again. If that thing thought he was going to give up without a fight, then it was sorely mistaken.

He had faced far too many villains before to be done in by this thing. He was one of the top pros now. He could take this, injured or not.

With determination set in his eyes, he focused on the enemy at hand.

It was staring at him… taking in his defensive stance almost lazily. It gave him a wily smile, something much too jovial to be considered sane.

This was a game to it. He was Its prey, and It was _thrilled_ to finally have something that fought back, that could make things more interesting.

The thought burned angrily in his mind. His wound flared with pain, but Izuku ignored it. It didn't matter right now.

That _thing_ was taunting him, toying with him because it didn't consider him a threat to its existence. That's why it hadn't attacked him yet, why it was just watching him gleefully. It didn't think it needed to make the first move, because he was just its _prey._

It was wrong.

He _wasn't_ prey, and Izuku was going to prove to it.

He was going to fight back; he was going to win.

* * *

The ranger went through the files of the most recent missings persons. The pro hero: Deku had last been seen Monday evening, after taking the job of surveillance over the park.

That had been almost a week ago. They had assumed him to be dead, as all the other heroes that had taken the job had died. The only problem was: they didn't have a body.

Police were sweeping the area, looking for any signs of where Deku could be. He was one of the top heroes, the ranger had difficulty believing him to be dead, but then… there was something odd happening in these woods lately.

The last few heroes that had taken the job… they had all died in this forest. No one knew what had ended them. Whatever it had been though, it had been strong to cause that kind of damage. The heroes had barely been recognizable, pieces of them missing, organs shredded. It had been disturbing to look at, and the smell… he had been on sight when one of the bodies had been recovered, and the smell had been awful.

The phone in his office rang, and he answered it promptly.

It had been the police.

They found a body.

They needed him to come out and take a look at it.

The ranger quickly got up from his desk, and staggered out to his vehicle. He bypassed the gates, and started to drive up to where they had found the body. Five miles north of the trail, closer to the base of the mountain, the police had found a body… though they had sounded unsure of themselves when he had inquired upon it further.

He trekked through the forest, heading toward the coordinates they had given him during the phone call. During the day, the forest was beautiful and serene. The sun shone brightly through the canopy of trees, highlighting the mossy ground. Wildlife skittered about the trees and forest floor in flurries, and the birds singing never ceased.

Though… all that tranquility was lost once the sun set. He had noticed it ever since he took the job here, that the forest may be alive during the day, but at night was when it became dangerous.

No one had been allowed in the forest at night, not even the rangers—just nightly surveillance at certain hours to make sure there wasn't anyone trespassing. That had been done by the park rangers… until, a month ago, when one of them had been found dead, body destroyed in a reckless murder.

Then the heroes had been called.

And one by one, they had all fallen too.

Now, they had the luxury of having a top notch hero to see if they could figure out what was going on, and even he had been slain by whatever lurked in this forest at night. The ranger doubted it was a villain at this point, not with how the bodies were when they found them. He didn't know what had caused these deaths, but whatever it had been, it was sinister in nature and far more dangerous. However, for the past week, the ranger had noticed a difference in the forest. It no longer felt as harrowing during the night as it had before…

It took about forty minutes of hiking through the dense forest to find them, but thanks to his quirk, an internal compass of sorts that made getting lost almost impossible, he was able to easily navigate the terrain and find the group of police officers. They were all huddled in a semi-circle, talking amongst themselves.

He walked up to them, not yet able to see the body. "Mornin'," he greeted soberly.

The three officers present nodded their heads in response, but made no other notion of conversation.

"So," he cut straight to the point, not bothering with the needless small talk, "where's the body. I'm assuming it's not who we were looking for, since you called me up here to take a look."

They all casted him wary looks and shook their heads.

One of the officers, a young male who looked a little more shaken than the other two officers present offered meekly, "The body's up wind a little ways… the-the smell is awful so we had to get away…"

The ranger wasn't impressed, "Well it's dead, ain't it? O' course it's gonna smell."

One of the other officers, the leader of the group by the looks of his demeanor, "Well, yes…" he lingered.

The ranger just rolled his eyes as he followed the officers up to where the body was. He couldn't really fault them for not wanting to smell the rotting corpse of a decaying body, it was one of the worst smells imaginable, but you couldn't just _leave_ the body unattended like that. Sure, it wasn't going anywhere, but you didn't want the wildlife to get at it before it could be I.D.'ed and a cause of death could be discerned. It was unprofessional to leave the body like that due to such childish reasons.

That was what the ranger thought, until the smell hit him.

He stopped.

He had smelled decayed animals before and more recently, decaying corpses of heroes, but that was nothing compared to this. This smell hit him hard, a tangible, pungent smell that left him gagging.

The other officers were holding their noses as they gestured to where the body lay. The ranger stepped forward, prepared to see the corpse of an unknown tourist or something akin to that, what he found was so much worse.

It wasn't… _human._

Sure, it looked at least a little humanoid in its features, but there was something disturbingly supernatural about it. He had never seen anything like this, but he had heard stories.

Its glassy eyes, milk white in color, were dull, but still terrifying to look at. He had to look away from them for a moment, something in them stirring at his sanity.

It, whatever it was, looked to have died from injuries sustained in a fight. It's claws were broken, splintered and cracked. Its skin was singed, as if burned, and there were multiple points of impact along its torso.

The ranger feared whatever could do that kind of damage to this… thing.

From the looks of it, it had been dead for a while, maybe a week or so, judging by the fact that most of the body had already decomposed into the earth. There wasn't much left, the carcass was mostly devoid of its innards, but outer structure remained mostly intact.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the officers, "So… do have any idea what that is, 'cause it's not human."

The ranger nodded as he turned away from the creature, "No, it most certainly isn't human. I've never seen anything like this before… but it looks to have died from injuries." They nodded in agreement.

It was then that the question poised itself in all of their brains. _If it had died from injuries… what had caused those injuries?_

His thoughts went back to that hero that had taken the job here only to go missing nearly a week ago… part of wondered if he had possibly run into this creature…

He knew that Deku had been strong, there was a reason he was one of the top pros, but then… if he had run into this beast and defeated it, why was he still missing? Wouldn't he have come back by now… unless…

One of the officers spoke up, "Do you think… do you think that Deku, you know the hero that went missing here a week ago— do you think he… and if so, could that mean that he's still…" There was a hopeful note in the officer's voice. She looked at him with almost pleading eyes, as if she was willing it to be true.

"I don't know," he stated simply. It had been a week, and if the creature had sustained many injuries… it would only be fair to assume that if Deku had encountered it, the same could be said for him as well. There was one thing that the ranger was sure of now, though: the weight of the forest wasn't nearly as ominous as it had been for the past couple of months. A veil had been lifted and the ranger thought that maybe, it was because the demon that had been haunting the forest was gone.

They would have to continue their search for the missing pro, but the ranger didn't know how long it would be until they found him… or recovered his body. He did know that ever since that night that Deku went missing, the forest had been calmer. It no longer felt as if evil lurked in the shadows during the day, and ran rampant during the night.

For that, he was grateful.

* * *

AN: I hope you enjoyed :D

I'm working on a few more one-shots for the horror genre and I'm really excited for them!

until next time,

Vera~


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